According to AirForceTimes, the aircraft is not always able to identify objects around it, since air defense systems have digital ways to avoid detection.
"We saw the SA-20 (as NATO calls the S-300. We knew it was an SA-20, but my fighter couldn't identify it," said Col. Craig Andrle, commander of the U.S. Air Force's 388th Fighter Wing.
Another U.S. service member, Colonel Brad Bashor, emphasized that F-35 pilots did not encounter provocations from Russia or Belarus during patrols.
Earlier, CNN, citing a high-ranking source in the US Department of Defense, reported that the United States lost some of its intelligence capabilities in the Black Sea after the drone crash.
At the same time, the Pentagon promises to continue drone flights where it is necessary to collect intelligence information.